COLERAIN TOWNSHIP, Ohio — The Hamilton County Coroner's Office identified the 24-year-old man who drowned after falling into a Colerain Township pond Tuesday evening.
The Colerain Fire Department said crews responded to a pond on Stone Mill Road after receiving a call at around 6:15 p.m. about a man, Wilmer Noe Perez-Lopez, who fell into the water after working on the property. Officials said crews were on the water within five minutes of the call.
Colerain Fire Battalion Chief Steve Conn said an off-duty Colerain Township firefighter lives nearby and heard the situation, jumping into the water to try to rescue Perez-Lopez. He was unable to grab him before he went underwater. According to a press release from the Colerain Township Department of Fire and Emergency Medical Services, the off-duty firefighter was within 5 feet of Perez-Lopez before losing sight of him. Officials said the man was in a canoe before falling into the water.
Because the water is likely under 50 degrees, Conn said the search was considered a cold-water rescue. Conn said it is possible for someone to survive even two hours after going into cold water, but once the search hit three hours it became a recovery mission.
While the pond does not look very big, officials said it is about 15 feet deep. The Hamilton County Sheriff's Office, Hamilton County Search and Rescue and Ohio Task Force 1 helped on scene, using sonar to find the man. They pulled Perez-Lopez's body out of the water around 11:15 p.m. Tuesday.
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